Italy is a southern European country consisting of a peninsula that extends well into the Mediterranean Sea.
Italy’s official language is Italian, which is also one of the official languages of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe and one the working languages of the Council of Europe. It is the second most widely spoken native language in the European Union, and it is used as a second language by 13.4 million EU citizens.
Italy is a unitary parliamentary republic with Rome as its capital and largest city. The Parliament is composed of 2 houses: The Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic. The country is sub-divided into 20 regions, of which 5 enjoy a special autonomous status.
Italy is one among the founding member states of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), which subsequently became the Economic Community (EEC) and the EU.
The country has 73 members in the European Parliament.
Italy was initially one among the most enthusiastic of EU members, which held solid pro-EU sentiments. However, the alarming 2008 financial crisis that shook Europe led many Europeans to lose faith in the EU’s ability to revive the economy.
Although many member states subsequently recovered the lost trust, most Italians still remained sceptical about a revival. Brexit only added to the Euroscepticism in the country, and today, Italy is probably the only EU country where most citizens hold anti-EU sentiments.
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